Breakdown of Íþróttir hjálpa mér með heilsuna og gefa mér orku.
Questions & Answers about Íþróttir hjálpa mér með heilsuna og gefa mér orku.
Íþróttir means sports.
The base word is íþrótt (sport). Its nominative plural form is íþróttir, which is used here because:
- it is the subject of the sentence (the thing doing the action), and
- we’re talking about sports in general, not one specific sport.
So: Íþróttir hjálpa… = Sports help…
Mér is the dative singular of ég (I).
The verb hjálpa (to help) in Icelandic normally takes the dative for the person being helped.
So:
- Íþróttir = subject (nominative plural)
- hjálpa mér = help me (dative)
You can’t say hjálpa mig; that would be wrong. It must be hjálpa mér.
Both are possible, but they mean slightly different things:
- Íþróttir hjálpa mér með heilsuna – literally “Sports help me with (my) health.” Here, I am the one being helped, in relation to my health.
- Íþróttir hjálpa heilsunni minni – “Sports help my health.” Here, heilsunni minni (my health, dative) is grammatically the thing being helped.
The original sentence focuses on me and my experience: they help me with my health.
The preposition með (with) is used here in the sense of “with, regarding, in relation to”.
- hjálpa mér með heilsuna = help me with my health / help me regarding my health.
Without með, hjálpa heilsuna would be ungrammatical; hjálpa doesn’t take a direct object in the accusative that way. You either:
- use hjálpa with a dative thing: hjálpa heilsunni minni,
or - use hjálpa [someone] með [something]: hjálpa mér með heilsuna.
Heilsa means health.
Heilsuna is:
- accusative singular,
- definite form: “the health.”
In practice, heilsuna here corresponds to “my health” in English. Icelandic often uses the definite article where English uses a possessive (my/your), especially with body parts and similar concepts.
So með heilsuna ≈ “with my health,” even though “my” is not explicitly stated.
Yes, með can take dative or accusative, with a difference in meaning:
- með + dative often suggests “with (accompanying)” – with someone, carrying something.
- með + accusative often suggests a more active involvement, “with, using, concerning.”
Here we have með heilsuna (accusative), in the meaning “with / regarding health.”
You’re not accompanied by your health; instead, health is the thing being dealt with, so accusative makes sense.
The present tense conjugation of hjálpa is:
- ég hjálpa
- þú hjálpar
- hann/hún/það hjálpar
- við hjálpum
- þið hjálpið
- þeir/þau/þær hjálpa
For they (þeir/þær/þau), the form is hjálpa – identical to the dictionary form.
Since Íþróttir is plural (“sports”), we use the 3rd person plural form hjálpa, which just happens to look like the infinitive.
The verb gefa (to give) normally takes:
- a dative for the person you give something to, and
- an accusative for the thing being given.
So:
- mér = dative (to me)
- orku = accusative (energy, as the thing given)
The pattern is: gefa [dative person] [accusative thing]
→ gefa mér orku = “give me energy.”
Orka means energy.
Orku is the accusative singular (indefinite) form.
In this sentence we mean “(some) energy, energy in general”, not a specific, identifiable “the energy.” Icelandic uses the indefinite form orku here in the same way English often omits “some” and just says “give me energy.”
Orkuna would be “the energy”, which would sound more specific or previously mentioned.
Repeating mér is normal and clear:
- Íþróttir hjálpa mér með heilsuna og gefa mér orku.
You could say:
- Íþróttir hjálpa mér með heilsuna og gefa orku.
That would probably still be understood as “give me energy,” but grammatically gefa orku just means “give energy (to someone/something).” Without mér, the indirect object is not explicit.
Using mér twice is more natural and unambiguous.
The word order here is straightforward S–V–(objects):
- Íþróttir (subject) hjálpa (verb) mér (indirect object) með heilsuna (PP) og gefa mér orku.
You can move the two verb phrases:
- Íþróttir gefa mér orku og hjálpa mér með heilsuna.
Both are fine.
However, you cannot split the verb and its required case partners randomly; for example, you can’t move mér far away from hjálpa or gefa in a way that breaks their relationship.
Icelandic present tense often covers:
- present ongoing actions and
- general truths / habits.
In this context, Íþróttir hjálpa mér með heilsuna og gefa mér orku is best understood as a general statement:
“Sports (in general) help my health and give me energy (as a rule).”
- íþrótt (singular) = a sport / (the) sport
- íþróttir (plural) = sports (several sports, or sports in general)
When talking about sports as an activity or category, Icelandic very often uses the plural íþróttir, similar to English:
- Ég stunda íþróttir. = I practice/play sports.
One natural way is:
- Íþróttir hjálpa heilsunni minni og gefa mér orku.
Here:
- heilsunni minni = “my health” (dative definite + possessive).
Your original sentence,
- Íþróttir hjálpa mér með heilsuna og gefa mér orku,
is at least as natural in everyday speech and is slightly more “me-centered”: they help me with my health.